Roxanne Johnson

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Tile Drainage Forum NDSU
Roxanne Johnson Extension Water Quality
Associate February 24, 2009
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• Overview of Project
• Focus Group
• Funding
• Cooperators
• Preliminary Results
• Whats next?

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• Focus Group April 2008
• Land owners
• Tile drain installers
• County, State and Federal Agencies
• County Water board members
• Soil Conservation District board members and
  technicians
• Health Department
• NRCS
• RCD members
• State Water Commission
• NDSU
• Engineers
• Soil Scientists
• Hydrologists

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• Discussion included
• Acres tile drained
• Do we really know?
• Permitting
• Authority
• Based on what?
• Impacts
• Water Quality Quantity
• Neighbors -Red River Lake Winnipeg

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• Discussion included
• Reasons for subsurface tiling
• Increased precipitation
• Higher water table
• Earlier access to fields

North Dakota Annual Precipitation History 1900 -
2000
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• Discussion included
• Reasons for subsurface tiling
• Increased salinity
• Calcium carbonate
• Magnesium sulfate
• Sodium sulfate
• 
  Franzen 2007

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Red River Valley Tile Drainage Water Quality
Assessment Phase I
Roxanne Johnson Extension Water Quality
Associate Thomas Scherer Extension Agricultural
Engineer Steve Fischer Lake Agassiz RCD
Coordinator
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• Funding
• 319 Nonpoint Source Pollution
• ND Department of Health
• Fargo and Bismarck
• Cass County Soil Conservation District
• CSREES Northern Plains Mountains Regional Water
  Program

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• Cooperators
• 10 land owner/operators
• Tile maps
• Cropping and fertilizer history
• Soil tests
• Precipitation

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19 sites 2 lift stations 17 gravity flow 170
mile round trip 32 weeks
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• 385428

Wheat
Lift Station
Installed 2007 Acres drained 275
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• 385428

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• 385438

Corn North of Erie
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• 385438

June 2008
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• 385444

Corn Durbin Maple River
Perched drain
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385444
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• 385454

Alfalfa Corn Emden
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• 385454

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December 5,2009
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December 5,2009
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Phase I

• Yet to do
• Assess data
• Determine information and education for
  landowners and general public

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Phase II
2009

• 7 COUNTIES SAMPLE 1 TILE DRAIN FOR WATER QUALITY
  ONLY
• CASS COUNTY INSTALLS AUTOMATED EQUIPMENT FOR FLOW
  RATE, WATER QUALITY, AND PRECIPITATION

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Phase II
2010

• 4 COUNTIES CONTINUE SAMPLING 1 TILE DRAIN FOR
  WATER QUALITY
• GRAND FORKS, RICHLAND, AND SARGENT COUNTIES
  INSTALL AUTOMATED EQUIPMENT FOR FLOW RATE, WATER
  QUALITY, AND PRECIPITATION

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Phase II 2009-2013
To determine the effect tile drain effluent from
saline soils has on water quality in tributaries
of the Red River.
Soils must be salt affected

• Water quality samples taken at
• Drain or lift station (automated sampler)
• Downstream location within a mile from the tile
  outlet
• Surface runoff of tiled field (automated
  sampler)
• Surface runoff of comparable un-tiled field

• Flow measurements taken at
• Drain or lift station (flume/weir)
• Surface runoff of tiled field (in automated
  sampler)

Soil Samples at 4 sites Rain gauges Automated
or Dewey
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Phase II 2009-2013

• Project Coordinators and Partners
• Work with SCDs to locate proper sites for
  sampling
• Meet with producers as needed
• Build and/or install equipment
• Coordinate training of sample collectors and
  oversee the
• collection and transportation of samples to the
  ND Dept of Health
• Download data from the automated equipment at
  sites
• Develop BMPs for landowners
• Prepare and present results of the assessment to
  the public

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Phase II 2009-2013
Funding North Dakota State Water Commission
Cass County Soil Conservation District EPA 319
Nonpoint Source Pollution CSREES Northern Plains
Regional Water Quality Program
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Red River Valley Tile Drainage Water Quality
Assessment
Questions?